Invasion of the Octarians
by DarkOmega13
Summary: On his 14th birthday, a young Inkling boy named Hiro attains humanoid form and starts playing Turf War. He tries to reach level 10 so that he can participate in Ranked Battle and eventually reach S Rank. But then, everything changes when the Octarians attack.
1. Chapter 1: You're a Kid Now!

"Beep-beep! Beep-beep!" cried the alarm clock.

It was a warm summer morning, and the sun was flying across the sky, bathing the city of Inkopolis in a shower of light. A young Inkling boy with blue hair was sleeping in his bed, wearing a sleeveless black shirt and a pair of shorts, when he heard the alarm go off. He woke up to turn off the alarm and noticed that his appearance had changed. His skin was now peach-colored, and he had grown fingers and toes. That's when he realized what day it was. "It's my 14th birthday," he said, "which means my metamorphosis is complete! I have achieved humanoid form and can now turn into a squid and back!" Then he turned into a squid and flopped around for a few seconds before turning back into a kid. "NGYES!" the boy shouted as he jumped into the air. Then he heard his mother's voice coming from downstairs. "Hiro! Breakfast is ready!" she exclaimed. "Coming, Mom!" said Hiro as he went downstairs to eat breakfast.

When he got to the kitchen, Hiro saw that his mother had made him a stack of squid-shaped pancakes. "Here you go," she said as she handed him the pancakes. "Thanks, Mom!" said Hiro as he took his breakfast over to the table, where his father was reading the newspaper and drinking coffee. "Well, if it isn't the birthday boy!" he said as Hiro sat down to eat. Then he ruffled Hiro's hair in a playful manner. Hiro groaned in protest. "Dad, stop!" he cried. "I'm not a little kid anymore! I'm 14 now!" "That's right!" said his mother as she handed another stack of pancakes to her husband. "And you're not just a squid anymore, either! You're a kid now!" Hiro laughed for a while. "Good one, Mom!" he said as he went back to eating his pancakes. "Happy birthday, Hiro," said his mother as she went back into the kitchen to make some pancakes for herself.

Despite the interruptions, Hiro finished his breakfast in record time. "Man, I'm stuffed!" he said as he rubbed his stomach, which was now bulging and full of food. Then his father began discussing something very important with him. "So, now that you're 14," he said, "you're now old enough to play Turf War." Hiro's eyes lit up when he heard the words. Turf War was the most popular sport in Inkopolis, which all Inklings start playing after they turn 14 and gain their shapeshifting abilities. "Which reminds me," said Hiro's father as he handed him a box covered in squid-patterned wrapping paper with a blue bow on top. "We thought it would be a good idea to give you your birthday presents now, since you're going to need them later." Hiro opened the present and found a white headband with a large gray stripe in the middle and a yellow T-shirt with a starfish pin on the front. "Wow!" he exclaimed. "It's a White Headband! And a Basic Tee!" "There's more where that came from," his mother said as she handed him another present, which contained a new pair of shoes. "Sweet!" said Hiro. "A pair of Cream Basics!" He gave his mother a hug and said "Thank you", then did the same for his father. Then his mother said, "Why don't you go get dressed, okay?" Hiro said "Okay", and then went upstairs to his room. He put on a pair of socks, the Basic Tee, the White Headband, and the Cream Basics. Then he picked up his scrunchie and tied back his hair in a ponytail, then went back downstairs. "That outfit looks great on you!" his mother exclaimed. "Thanks, Mom!" said Hiro. Then his father said, "Hold on. We have one more present for you." Then he handed Hiro a third present, which was a different shape than the first two. When Hiro opened the present, his eyes grew wide. "No way!" he cried. "It's a Splattershot Jr.!" "Standard issue for new players," said his father. "I bought it just for you." Then he gave Hiro a backpack-like tank, some pyramid-shaped explosives, and a portable force-field generator. He said, "It comes with an Ink Tank, a set of Splat Bombs, and a Bubbler." Hiro put the Ink Tank on his back, and it instantly filled up with blue ink. The Splattershot Jr. and the Splat Bombs filled up with blue ink as well. Then Hiro put the Splat Bombs and the Bubbler into some sort of pocket dimension. "Thanks, Dad!" he said as he gave his father a big hug. "You're welcome, Hiro," said his father. "Now head over to the Training Area. That's where Inklings learn to play Turf War on the way to Inkopolis Plaza." "Okay," said Hiro. Then he picked up the Splattershot Jr. and headed for the door. "Bye, Hiro!" his mother said before giving him a smooch on his forehead. "Bye, Mom! Bye, Dad!" he exclaimed as he walked out the door and set off for the Training Area.


	2. Chapter 2: The Training Area

When he arrived at the Training Area, Hiro put on his Ink Tank and equipped his Splattershot Jr., ready to begin his training session. He listened closely as a mysterious voice spoke to him.

"Hey, you!" said the voice. "Yeah, you! Want to be the freshest squid on the block?" "Of course I do!" Hiro replied. The voice said, "We'll teach you some funky-fresh moves on the way to Inkopolis Plaza!" Then a green balloon with the Turf War logo on it appeared in front of Hiro. "Shoot ink with your weapon!" said the voice. "Pop the balloons!" Hiro said "Okay!", and then shot the balloon, causing it to pop. Then a second balloon appeared on the left. When he popped it, a third one appeared above the spot where the first was. He popped the third balloon, causing a fourth to appear on the right, which he popped as well. Then several balloons appeared throughout the Training Area. "Here I go!" he said as he started running through the Training Area, popping balloons along the way.

When he reached the section of the Training Area resembling a skatepark, Hiro saw a few patches of blue ink on the ground. _That's weird,_ he thought to himself. _There's already blue ink here._ Nevertheless, he kept shooting the ground, adding more ink. Then the mysterious voice spoke again. "Turn into a squid!" it said. "You can swim in ink as a squid!" So Hiro turned into a squid and swam through the ink for a few seconds before switching back to humanoid form. Then he inked more of the ground and popped some more balloons, swimming through the ink as a squid to move faster. As Hiro approached a pair of walls and quarter-pipes resembling a giant staircase, the mysterious voice said, "You can even swim up walls! Your ink refills quickly while you swim!" Hiro inked the quarter-pipes and swam up them to reach the third section of the Training Area.

In the third section. Hiro found a small pyramid with three steps, which were somehow too big for him to simply walk up. The mysterious voice said, "Jump (even as a squid)!" So Hiro jumped up the steps of the pyramid. At the top was a balloon floating directly above a small ramp. Hiro popped the balloon and ran towards the ramp. "While swimming, you can dash jump!" exclaimed the voice. "You'll jump much farther than usual!" "Okay," said Hiro as he turned into a squid and performed a dash jump. When he reached the raised walkway on the other side, he switched back to humanoid form and popped three more balloons, then kept running until he reached a grate. The voice said, "Turn into a squid to swim through grates!" "Got it," Hiro replied. Then he turned into a squid and swam through the grate.

When he reached the fourth and final section of the Training Area, Hiro saw an unusual sight. There was a crashed UFO surrounded by dark fuchsia ink. He jumped down onto the ink and got stuck. "Oh, no! I'm stuck!" he cried. "Use your weapon to cover enemy ink with your color!" yelled the mysterious voice. "You'll get stuck in ink that's not your color!" "Thanks for the tip," Hiro said sarcastically as he covered the foreign ink with his own blue ink. When he got out of the enemy ink, he ran towards the end of the Training Area, inking more turf and covering more enemy ink along the way. He reached the first wall, which was blocked by several wooden crates. "Use a Splat Bomb to destroy the crates!" said the voice. "Don't forget to swim as a squid to refill your ink!" "Whatever you say, mysterious voice!" replied Hiro as he took a Splat Bomb out of his apparently bottomless pockets and threw it at the crates. After a few seconds, the Splat Bomb exploded, destroying the crates and leaving behind a puddle of ink. Hiro refilled his Ink Tank, inked the first wall and swam up it to reach the second wall. Then he inked the second wall and swam up it to reach the end of the Training Area. "Climb on up–you're almost to Inkopolis Plaza!" the voice said as Hiro swam up the walls. "Jump to climb faster!" At the end of the Training Area was a Launchpad which led to Inkopolis Plaza. "There it is!" Hiro shouted. "The Launchpad to Inkopolis Plaza!" "All right–you're ready for action!" said the voice. "Use the Launchpad to Super Jump!" "Thanks!" said Hiro as he stepped onto the Launchpad. "Inkopolis Plaza, here I come!" Then he turned into a squid and used the Launchpad to Super Jump to Inkopolis Plaza.


	3. Chapter 3: An Old Friend

Inkopolis Plaza was bustling with activity. Many young Inklings gathered in the plaza for various reasons, whether they were going to Inkopolis Tower, shopping at Booyah Base, or just hanging out. Just then, one of them heard a loud _WHOOSH_ in the distance. "Look! Up in the sky!" said the Inkling as he pointed skyward. "A newcomer is Super Jumping to the plaza!"

At that moment, Hiro landed in the center of the plaza, his eyes filled with excitement. His Splattershot Jr. had mysteriously disappeared, along with his Ink Tank, but he was too thrilled about being in the plaza to care. "Aw, yeah!" he shouted. "I finally made it to Inkopolis Plaza!" He looked around for a bit, taking a moment to admire his new surroundings. He thought about going shopping at Booyah Base, but since he was only level 1, he knew that the shopkeepers would just turn him away. Instead, he decided to go to Inkopolis Tower, the city's most famous landmark, and sign up to play Turf War. But then, he saw a girl with orange hair walking around the plaza. She was wearing a White Tee, a pair of Studio Headphones, and a pair of Pink Trainers. Somehow, Hiro recognized the girl as his childhood friend Yuki. She had turned 14 just three days earlier, and was already a skilled Turf War player. When she saw Hiro, she smiled at him and shouted "Woomy!", then walked up to him. "It's about time you showed up, Hiro," she said. "Welcome to Inkopolis Plaza!" "H-h-hi, Yuki," Hiro said sheepishly. "You look… different." "So you've noticed," Yuki replied, giggling. Then she looked at her phone and saw the time. "Oh look," she remarked. "It's almost 10 AM. Inkopolis News will be on soon. Would you like to watch it with me?" "Sure!" replied Hiro. "Well then," said Yuki, "let's watch Inkopolis News together!" Then, all the Inklings in the plaza stopped to look at the big screen on top of the building to the right of Inkopolis Tower. "It's starting! It's starting!" Yuki screamed. Sure enough, Inkopolis News was about to begin.

A wave of magenta and lime green appeared on the screen, followed by the Inkopolis News logo. Then, a pair of 17-year-old girls appeared. They wore matching outfits, with a few key differences. The other Inklings recognized them as Callie and Marie, also known as the Squid Sisters, the most famous pop stars in all of Inkopolis. Callie, the one on the left, was the more cheerful of the two. She had long black hair with magenta ends. It fell down to her hips despite being tied back in the shape of a bow. She had gold eyes with cross-shaped pupils, and there was a beauty mark under her left eye. She wore a sequined black dress with a puffy, shorts-like bottom and a corset-like top with three slits in the front, revealing a layer of magenta underneath. She also wore a pair of white gloves, a pair of magenta tights, a pair of black boots with magenta soles and buttons, a pair of round, white earrings, and a magenta hat shaped like a piece of _ikayaki_. Meanwhile, Marie, the one on the right, was the quieter of the two. She had grayish-white hair with lime green ends. It was also tied back in the shape of a bow, except it was tied off to the side and much shorter than Callie's. She also had gold eyes like Callie's, only hers pointed down instead of up, and her beauty mark was under her right eye. She too wore a sequined black dress, although hers was more traditional and had a skirt for the bottom. Under the skirt, Marie wore a pair of shorts with a pair of lime green tights underneath. Her dress also had three slits in the front to reveal a layer of lime green. She also wore a pair of white gloves, a pair of black boots with lime green soles and buttons, a pair of round, white earrings, and a lime green hat shaped like a piece of calamari. Not only were the Squid Sisters famous pop stars, but they were also the hosts of Inkopolis News. The other Inklings watched as the Squid Sisters started the news broadcast.

"Hold on to your tentacles!" said Callie.

"It's Inkopolis News time!" said Marie.

"Let's unveil the current Turf War stages!"

"All right!"

They announced the current stages for Turf War, which were Urchin Underpass and Blackbelly Skatepark. They also exchanged some witty banter during the stage announcements. After announcing the stages, however, the Squid Sisters received some shocking news.

"News flash! News flash!" Callie shouted.

"What is it? What is it?!" asked Marie.

"Inkopolis' Great Zapfish has… vanished!"

"Wait, seriously?"

All the other Inklings gasped when they heard the news. The Great Zapfish was Inkopolis' main source of power. Normally, it sat on top of Inkopolis Tower, but today, it wasn't there at all. "This is bad," said Hiro. "Yeah," said Yuki. "Without the Great Zapfish, we won't have any electricity!" Then the Squid Sisters continued their news report.

"If it isn't recovered soon," said Callie, "are we going to lose power?"

Marie replied, "Oh, I'm sure it will be fine… probably."

The other Inklings were baffled by Marie's lack of concern regarding the Great Zapfish's disappearance. Nevertheless, they continued watching the report. Then, an image of a UFO in the sky appeared on the monitor behind the Squid Sisters. There was a single red tentacle coming out of the flying saucer.

"I wonder if it has anything to do with that UFO crash!" exclaimed Callie.

"Sounds likely to me!" said Marie.

As perplexed as they were by Marie's indifference, the Inklings were even more confused by the UFO crash. "A UFO crash?" asked Yuki. "Sounds pretty odd, doesn't it?" At first, Hiro was confused as well, but then he remembered the crashed UFO in the Training Area. "Wait a minute!" he shouted. "Huh?" said Yuki, startled by Hiro's sudden increase in volume. "Hiro, is something wrong?"

"There's a crashed UFO in the Training Area!"

"WHAAAAAT!?"

Hiro told Yuki what happened in the Training Area. He explained how he found the crashed UFO and got stuck in the dark fuchsia ink surrounding it.

"Dark fuchsia?" Yuki asked. "Hiro, that was Octarian ink!"

"Octarian ink?!" exclaimed Hiro. "But that means…"

"Means what?"

"It means the Octarians must have stolen the Great Zapfish!"

"But how? The Octarians disappeared after the Great Turf War!"

"Hard to believe, I know. Anyway, let's watch the rest of the news broadcast."

"Okay."

So they watched the rest of the news broadcast, which was almost over by now. The Squid Sisters signed off at the end of the broadcast. "Well, that's all for now!" exclaimed Callie. "Until next time…" Finally, the Squid Sisters shouted, at the same time, the following words:

"Staaaay fresh!"

After the news broadcast, the Inklings discussed the situation for a few seconds, then went right back to chilling in the plaza without a care in the world. However, Yuki was still worried about the Ocatrians stealing the Great Zapfish. "Oh, my cod!" she exclaimed. "The Great Zapfish has been stolen by the Octarians, and all of a sudden, nobody cares!" "Calm down," said Hiro, with his hand on Yuki's shoulder. "There's nothing we can do about it." Yuki sighed. "I guess you're right, Hiro," she said.

"Anyway," said Hiro, "I'm going to Inkopolis Tower. See you later, Yuki!"

"Okay," replied Yuki. "I'm going to Arowana Mall. Bye, Hiro!"

The two Inklings then parted ways. As Yuki left for Arowana Mall, Hiro ran toward Inkopolis Tower and went inside.


End file.
